Preparation

Roast beef:

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Pat beef dry and cut 1/2-inch-deep slits at 1-inch intervals all over roast, then insert 1 piece of pancetta into each slit. Sprinkle beef with kosher salt and pepper. Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over high heat until just smoking, then brown beef on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer beef to a small roasting pan, reserving skillet.

Roast beef in middle of oven until an instant-read thermometer inserted diagonally 2 inches into center registers 120°F, about 25 minutes. Transfer beef to a cutting board and let stand, loosely covered with foil, 25 minutes. (Beef will continue to cook as it stands, reaching 130°F for medium-rare.)

Make sauce while beef stands:

Heat reserved skillet over moderately high heat until oil is hot but not smoking, then saut é shallot until golden, about 2 minutes. Add red wine and Marsala and deglaze skillet by boiling, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until liquid is reduced by about one third. Add demiglace and jelly and briskly simmer, whisking, until jelly is incorporated, about 2 minutes. Add butter, 1 bit at a time, whisking until incorporated, then remove from heat. Whisk in salt and pepper. Pour sauce through a fine sieve into a bowl, pressing on solids.

We use Demi-Glace Gold, available in specialty foods shops, some supermarkets, and by mail order from More Than Gourmet (800-860-9385) or the demiglace/brown sauce from Citarella (212-874-0383).

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Reviews

I studded the tenderloin with the pancetta as directed, though I am not sure this rather tedious chore is worth the effort in the end. I coated the outside of the tenderloin with salt, as directed, to which I added about 1 ½ Tbsp cracked black peppercorns. This was a stellar change and we all enjoyed the salty-peppery crust. The Marsala and wine sauce is easy and delicious. I could not find the demiglace, so substituted canned beef consommé (undiluted) and decreased the salt accordingly. The sauce was still excellent and I do not think this resulted in a discernible decrease in quality. I will make this again, possibly without the pancetta.

Wonderful. I made it as directed with the addition of the slivers of garlic as suggested by other reviewers. It was a big hit on Christmas Eve and I won't wait until next Christmas to make it again. Here's a tip for the pancetta--freeze it first and it will be easier to cut and firm so it slips into the slits easily.

Absolutely delicious! For me, the best part wasn't even
the tenderloin - it was the sauce (and the
leftovers...read below!).
I didn't have marsala, so I used a decent quality pinot
noir for both wine measurements. Also, I couldn't find
demi-glace, so I used a basic beef broth which I reduced
down to the correct amount. I also sauteed the extra
pancetta in the pan with the shallots before adding the
rest of the ingredients. The sauce was the most
delicious sauce I have ever tasted!
Here's a tip - set aside the shallots when you strain the
sauce, and then add any leftover sauce back to them. I
stored this in the fridge overnight and it made this
ridiculous shallot "jam." With the tenderloin leftovers
the next day, I made sandwiches on crusty baguettes
spread with that shallot jam, sliced tenderloin, melted
brie and fresh arugula. I think we enjoyed the leftovers
as much as the original dinner!

Oooooh I just made
this last night.
My daughter was
home from school
for the weekend and
I wanted to cook
something
out of the ordinary
for her
and her high school
best friend who was
visiting.
I had some pancetta
left over after
prepping the
tenderloin so I
chopped it up and
put in in the pan
with the oil before
browning the
tenderloin. It
added a nice flavor
to the sauce.
I served this with
asparugus risotto
and green beans
with pine nuts and
lemon (inspired by
the reviewer
below!). It was
fabulous though the
timing was tricky.

We served this for
Christmas dinner
and it was
wonderful. As
another reviewer
suggested, we slid slices of garlic
into the slits with
the pancetta. The
beef was excellent
and elegant. The
sauce was simple to
prepare and tasted
delicious. We
served this with
roasted parsnips,
fennel and carrot
gratin, salad, and
green beans with
pine nuts and
lemon. This is a
very simple recipe
that yields
impressive results.

I made this dish for our Christmas Eve supper. It received rave reviews from the whole family. I was unable to obtain demi-glace so I reduced a good quality beef stock by 2/3's and made a roux to thicken the sauce. I also added some chopped fresh thyme. It was great!

Our family thought this was fabulous! I served it with Mashed Potatoes w/Sage and Cheddar Cheese and a cold asparagus salad. The sauce was tricky but not impossible. I thinned it w/warm water and used less demiglace than the recipe calls for and it turned out great. These are very rich dishes, but it sure makes a great special occasion meal.

I have made this twice. First time I coated the meat in a mixture of flour, course salt, and pepper, then pan seared it before placing it in the oven. Second time I cooked it on the grill. I used thick cut Pancetta, and also put a garlic sliver in with each piece. The Demi Glace is a bit much, I made a peppercorn sauce that also complemented well. Everyone loved this both times.

this was great! I paid attention to the demi-glace, doubled the marsala and it was very well received. I do agree that thick pancetta would be easier to work with.
Paired this with sauteed green beans and a Washington State Merlot.

BEWARE OF DEMI-GLACE. Oops. I wish I had read the review that mentioned that some purchased demi-glace needs to be diluted. My sauce had the consistency of cement and tasted terrible. I am sure that was the mistake... But also, aside from the fact that we had a spectacular cut of meat, this beef recipe was nothing special. If I were to try it again, I would order the pancetta thickly sliced so it would have a chance of adding flavor to the meat.

Wow! was this dish ever great! However, I think the main thing to do is to have a very good cut of meat. Once you have that the sauce and meat are so fabulous together that you simply could not go wrong. I reduced quite a bit more wine than asked for and was glad I did. Served it with potatoes gratin and sugar snap peas in a burnt butter and roasted hazel nuts. My guest absolutely loved this dinner. Definately a winner!

I have made this several times and it turned out wonderful each time. It's a great entree for a small dinner party, since tenderloin roasts are usually relatively small -- I had a hard time finding one over 2 lbs.
To the cook with the demiglace problem: Although I didn't use the Williams-Sonoma demiglace, the one I did use required it to be diluted - one part demiglace to four parts hot water. I fear that you may have followed the recipe too literally, and simply added the requisite amount of concentrated demiglace, without diluting it first. Please try again; this is wonderful!

This is one delicious dish! The sauce really makes it special -- sends it over the top. I used a 4-lb. eye-of-the-round roast and followed the recipe exactly. I, too, used Demi-Glace Gold, mixing about 2 Tbsp. enough added warm water to equal 3/4 cup total. This couldn't be improved upon; it's absolutely seductive, and made my Fathers' Day meal for my stepdad something to remember.

When I made this recipe I used a beef demiglace that I bought from Williams-Sonoma. I used the recipe-recommended amount of 3/4 cup and it was almost inedible. I ended up diluting the sauce, re-thickening it with a roux, and readjusting all the seasonings. I suggest that anyone making this sauce for the first time, use a minimum of 1/4 cup demiglace, taste, and proceed according to your individual taste. At $30.00 per jar, it was a waste of demiglace.

This is a fabulous recipe.Easy to make and a wonderful taste. We made it with the entire dinner suggested in the March 2000 issue (wild rice and almond pilaf, snow peas with lemon herb butter and rum current ice cream). We started with the roasted tomato and red pepper soup with chilled mint from the August 2000 Gourmet. Everyone was really impressed.

This was one of best meals I have ever had! It turned out perfect and there were oohs and aahs all around the table. It is SIMPLE and yet looks so professional. The tastes combine to give you a taste of heaven.

Cooking the meat to a perfect medium rare and preparing the sauce yield an amazing dish with lots of flavor. I prefer black currant jelly to red currant jelly, so I used that instead. I served the tenderloin with truffle oil-sauteed leek mashed potatoes and roasted baby vegetables. Indescribably delicious.